Make sure the board slots are clean. If you get anything stuck in there it won't go together.
Use cork at the edges to fill the gaps under the cover strip. If these are put in good and tight then it will stay together like a jigsaw.
Some types lock together, but cheaper stuff won't so you need the edges tight.
Use the tools to knock the boards together. Don't use glue.
Some engineered flooring is so poorly made that it just won't go together right. I took an entire load back to Home Depot because it wouldn't go together on the floor. A manager showed how he could snap them together by Bringing the backs into almost a "V" and them twisting them in. When I asked him to demonstrate that with one piece laying flat on the floor he refunded the purchase. Personally I prefer tongue and groove joinery in flooring.
I'm installing the laminate flooring with my mom. She wants to be fast and get it over with but I want it done right. There are gaps everywhere and I mean everywhere. There huge but the flooring wont lock or drop or nothing at all. I'm thinking about using wood glue after hammering it shut to remove all the gaps. It's just all wrong and no solutions.
